March31, 2017

Companies based in China and other foreign countries take advantages of weaknesses in international mail security standards to break U.S. customs laws and regulations by shipping drugs directly through the U.S. postal system; The bipartisan Synthetics Trafficking & Overdose Prevention (STOP) Act that Klobuchar introduced with Senator Rob Portman will help close this loophole and stop dangerous synthetic drugs like carfentanil from being shipped through our borders

New reports indicate that carfentanil, a drug from China that is 100 times more potent than the already dangerous fentanyl, has caused five overdose deaths in Minnesota this year, with potentially more undetermined deaths also linked to the drug

WASHINGTON, DC – With a new and lethal strain of synthetic heroin from China causing overdose deaths in Minnesota, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar is renewing her call for the Senate to pass her bipartisan bill to crack down on synthetic opioids from overseas. Companies based in China and other foreign countries take advantages of weaknesses in international mail security standards to break U.S. customs laws and regulations by shipping drugs directly through the U.S. postal system. The bipartisan Synthetics Trafficking & Overdose Prevention (STOP) Act that Klobuchar introduced with Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) earlier this year will help close this loophole and stop dangerous synthetic drugs like carfentanil from being shipped through our borders. New reports indicate that carfentanil, a drug from China that is 100 times more potent than the already dangerous fentanyl, has caused five overdose deaths in Minnesota this year, with potentially more undetermined deaths also linked to the drug.

“Dangerous synthetic opioids that find their way into our communities through the postal system – like carfentanil from China – continue to claim the lives of people in Minnesota and across the country,” Klobuchar said. “In the face of these tragedies, we need to step up efforts to stop these synthetic drugs from coming across our borders from foreign countries in the first place. My bipartisan legislation will give law enforcement the tools they need to help curb the trafficking of synthetic drugs and keep them away from our communities.”

The STOP Act would require shipments from foreign countries through our postal system to provide electronic advance data—such as who and where it is coming from, who it is going to, and what is in it—before they cross our borders and enter the U.S. Having this information in advance will enable Customs and Border Protection to better target potential illegal packages and keep these dangerous drugs from ending up in the hands of drug traffickers who want to harm our local communities.

In addition to Klobuchar and Portman, Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) are also original cosponsors of the STOP Act. Representatives Pat Tiberi (R-OH) and Richard Neal (D-MA) have introduced bipartisan companion legislation in the House.

As a former Hennepin County Attorney, Klobuchar has long led local and national efforts to curb drug abuse and help people overcome addiction. Klobuchar was one of four senators, along with Portman and Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and former Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), to lead the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA). This bipartisan legislation, which was signed into law last July, encourages states and local communities to pursue a full array of proven strategies in the fight against opioid addiction. At the end of 2016, $1 billion was made available by Congress to fund the national effort.

Yesterday, Klobuchar and Portman introduced legislationto require the use of prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) in all states that received certain federal funding to combat opioid abuse and also require states to make their PDMP data available to other states. Earlier this year, she joined with Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) and other senators to introduce the Budgeting for Opioid Addiction Treatment (LifeBOAT) Act, which would establish a reliable funding stream to provide and expand access to substance abuse treatment. She and a bipartisan group of senators introduced the Synthetic and Labeling of Toxic Substances (SALTS) Act to make it easier to prosecute the sale of “analogue” drugs, which are synthetic substances that are substantially similar to illegal drugs. In September 2014, the DEA implemented Klobuchar’s bipartisan Secure and Responsible Drug Disposal Act. Under the legislation, consumers are provided with more safe and responsible ways to dispose of unused prescription medications and controlled substances.